Thermal pad for cots



March I29, 11932. H. W EDWARDS V .41,851,499

THERMAL PAD FOR COTS Filed July 5l, 1929 lll Patented Mar. 29, 1932 UNrrsn stares HIRAM W. EDWARDS, OF LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA THERMAL PAD non oo'rs Application inea July 31, i929. sei-iai No. 382,518,

This invention relates to a device or attachment for use with a camp cot or steamer chair or the like and has for an object to provide an under spring thermal pad which may readily be attached to or detached fromv the under side of a camp cot, army cot, steamer chair or like article to prevent undue loss of heat through the bottom of the cot or chair and thus keep the user warmer than in the usual arrangements.

It is a further object of this invention to provide an under spring or thermal pad that has means whereby it may be. quickly and easily attached to snugly lit close to the bottom of the supporting canvas or spring below the light mattress and springs such as is usually used to support the body of a person resting. on a canvas camp cot, army cot, steamer chair or like article.

-With the foregoing and other objects in view, the invention consists in certain novel features of construction, combinations and arrangements of parts aswill be more fully 5 describedin connection with the accompanying drawings.

In these drawings: Fig. 1 isa top plan view of a camp cot to which anV embodiment of this invention Vhas been applied. Y Fig. 2 is a longitudinal section on line 22 of Fig. l. l v

Fig. 3 is a Cross section on line 3%-3 of Fig. l.

Fig. 4 is an enlarged cross section similar to Fig. 3 of one edge of the cot canvas or spring, its side support and the under spring pad held in place thereby.

lFig. 5 is an enlarged cross sectional view similar to Fig. 3 of an edge of the under mattress and attaching means per se, and is on line 5-5 of Fig. 6.

Fig. 6 is a top plan view of the under slung ad. p Fig. 7 is a cross section of an occupied camp 5 cot to which an embodiment of this invention has been attached.

It is a well known fact that the ordinary camp cot or army cot sleeps cold so to speak, in spite of blankets or sleeping bags the users may wrap themselves in. This is believed to be because the weight of the body compresses" and mats together the fibres of thematerial of which the blankets and bags are made andA drives out to a large eXtent the air held byf them so that the air spacesare greatly re-`v duced. The blankets or bags thus form fairly goed conductors of heat instead of insulators,v4 permitting escape of heat of the body. ,Inorder fora blanket to bea good non-conduc-k tor of heat it must be softand fluy,'for itis really the little air spaces"` between the fibres that determine the heat non-conducting prop# erties rather than the 'material ofwhich theL blanket or comforter is made, Therefore, as

indicated above, when the weight of the' sleeper is carried by these blankets as in the ordinary cot, they are compressed into.a layer' of material much thinner than normal. .This compression and reduction in thicknesswith the driving out of the air and reduction-of the air spaces makes the' blankets under the sleeper` a relatively betterv conductor of heat and hence they-lose their desired quality as thermal insulators, while the blankets above the sleeper are not "compressed and Vretain their desired insulating" properties. Thus the cotsare cold from Athe bottom. I have' overcome this objection placing the lower insulating material, or at least part of it, be# low the supporting canvas rather than on t'op of it. It is therefore not between the body of the sleeper and the canvas where it is'compressed by the weight ofthe body, vbut as it is below thev canvas it retains its loose fluffy condition and its normal heat insulating prop` erties. Generally speaking it consists Vof a pad of suitable material easily applied to theA cot or chair, and made to hang snugly, butnotv too tightly, on the undersideof cot canvas. There is shown at 10 the legs of a conven tional camp, cot ,having longitudinal Vside rails 1l and. end rails 12 to which the'can vas or spring 13 is detachably afixedby any conventional means as by tacks oreyelets (not shown). The under thermal pad constituted in the embodiment of this invention `comprises a. sheetjlll ofcanvas drilling or similar material which has attached to its 1.0.0

ends a slightly larger sheet 15 sewed aboutis seWed as at 19 to leave an open endthrough.

whichV the cot canvasor spring 13 may be placed before being attached toits end rail 12. Alixed at spaced intervals along the sides i of the pad by means of stitching as atV 21 are a series of flexible straps V22 which may be and preferably are of elastic material to hold the pad'snugly against the bottom of thecanvas and .have atAV their opposite ends knobs 23 which preferably comprise a piece of sheet metal23 such as aluminum or other suitable metalcurved to conform to the shape of side rail 11 against vwhich it is Yto be placed and held by wrapping the material of the straps aroundfit'V and stitching the free end to form a loop 23;4 Other ways of supporting the pad may of course be used.

Inoperationthe camp bed in beingset up has the ends of its canvasor spring 13 inserted through the loops 18 before being attached to the end rails 12 and the knobs or loops 23 alongv the sides are inserted between the sides ofthe canvas .13 and the side rails 11a`s shown in Fig. 4. A blanket or thin mattress 24"is placed on the cot lcanvas or spring'4 andas is obvious it will be compressedk a great dealh as at 25 when the person 26 lies on it'. The usual upperblanket's are indicated at'27`. When the camp bed is used without the under pad herein described a great deal of body heat will escape through the compressed portion 2:5 of the blanket 24 serving asamattress, and the occupant will be uncomfortably cold on a cool night. This is due to the fact'that the warming effect of the blanket or quilt 24 is due, as described above,

not to the. material of the blanket but to the air'v spaces in the material and when the blanketis compressed the air is driven out of these air spaces and the blanket or mattress 24 instead of serving as a heat insulator serves asa heat conductor, thereby chilling the occupant. When the under thermal pad constituting;V this Yinvention is used, the air spaces in the fibrous material as cotton, wool, etc., 16 therein will remain while in use, there being no pressure tending to compress this pad; due to its being positioned below the mattress the canvas or spring, as shown in Figs. 2 andl 7, and itV will thus act as a very `good. heat insulator, preventing the cot occupant' from being chilled.

` Thus it will be seen that this invention pro i videsan under'thermal pad which serves very eiciently to keep the occupant of the Cot Warm and comfortable, yet is very simple in construction and can be manufactured at relatively lowcost, and can be very easily placed in use as above described. It is not limited to use on a cot but is equally adapted for steamer chairs and the like.

It is also to be understood that altho the support of the cot is illustrated in the drawings as a strip of canvas or the like, the pad may be used under any similar support and whether it is of canvas or a set of springs or the like, the fundamental idea` being that the heat insulating pad is mounted at the under side of the body support where it is not compressed by the weight of the body but always retains its-light, fluffy condition.

Having thus set forth. the naturev of this in,-v

vention, what is claimed is:

1. A heat insulatingy device for cotsy and the like,.comprising aheat insulating pad of fibrous material and yielding means at they sides of the pad to Vattach it to the side rails V of the cot attlle under side ofthe cotcanvas or body support so that the entire weight of the body is carried by said canvas or support independently of the pad, and the yielding means automatically retains the' pad in contact with the under side of the canvas or body support.

3. A heat insulating device for the like, comprising a heat insulating pad of fibrous materia-l, means at the sides of the pad to attach it to the side rails of the cot at the under side ofthe cot canvas, and loops at the ends, of the pad through which the canvas may pass to support these ends.

V4. A heat insulating device for cotsand the lik-e, comprising a heat insulating pad of fibrous material, means at the sides of the pad to attachit to the side rails'of the cot at the under side of the cot canvas, comprising straps secured to the pad having loops at their free endsl and a curved sheet metal member enclosed by the loops, said loop and member capable of being held between the canvas and the side rail by the weight on the canvas.

5. A cot under-pad comprising a canvas sheet or like element, a similar sheet fastened thereto adjacent its edges, an insulating filler inserted between said sheets and means for attaching said pad to the bottom of a cot comprising straps attached to the side of said pad having knobs adapted to be held between the cot canvas and the cot canvas supporting rails.

6. A cot under pad comprising a canvas sheet or like element, a similar slightly larger sheet fastened thereto adjacent its edges, an insulating filler inserted between said sheets and means for attaching said pad tothe bottom of a cot comprising straps attached to the side of said under pad having knobs of curved sheet metal adapted to be held between the cot canvas and cot canvas supporting rails.

7. A cot underV pad comprising a canvas sheet or like element, a similar sheet fastened thereto adjacent its edges, an insulating filler inserted between said sheetsand means for attaching said pad to the bottom of a cot coinprising straps attached to the side of said under padhaving between the cot canvas and the cot canvas supporting rails, and looped ends adapted to be passed about the end of the cot canvas.

8. A cot under pad comprising a canvas sheet or like element, a similar slightly larger sheet fastened thereto an insulating filler inserted between said sheets and means for attaching said pad to the bottom of acot, comprising straps attached to the side of said under pad having knobs of curved sheet held between the cot canvas and the cot canvas supporting rails, and looped ends adapted to be passed about the ends of the cot canvas.

9. A cot or the like comprising side rails, a flexible canvas or similar support carried by and between said rails and adapted to support the entire weight of the body, anda heat insulating pad of fibrous material mounted at the underside of said support in contact therewith, said pad being mounted by means adapted to automatically permit the pad to move downwardly with the support, said support being mounted to support the weight of the body independently of the pad so that the fibers of the pad are not coinpressed by the weightof the body and said yielding means automatically maintains the pad in contact with the support.

l0. A heat insulating device for cots and the like having a flexible body support, comprising a heat insulating pad of fibrous material, and means for mounting the pad to yieldingly dispose it loosely at and closely adjacent the underside of the body support of the cot or the like so that it may move downwardly with the body support as this support moves downwardly under the weight of the body so that the weight of the body is always carried by the support and the ibers of the pad are therefore not appreciably depressed by the weight of the body, and said yielding means adapted to automatically. retain the pad closely adjacent the underside of the suport. p In testimony whereof I ailix my Signature.

HIRAM W. EDWARDS.

knobs adapted to be held adjacent its edges,

metal adapted to be 

